


7.28

by canicallyoumaddie



Series: Our Story: A Domestic Klance AU [17]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Birthday Fic!, Established Relationship, Innuendo, Keith is sappy af, M/M, Married Klance, klance, lance is sick, they're gross but i love them
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-28
Updated: 2017-07-28
Packaged: 2018-12-08 08:50:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,792
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11643096
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/canicallyoumaddie/pseuds/canicallyoumaddie
Summary: It's Lance's birthday, and Keith has things planned...but you know what they say about "best laid plans."aka, Lance is sick on his birthday and Keith is the best.





	7.28

**Author's Note:**

> HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY BEAUTIFUL SON!
> 
> It's Lance's birthday, and I know it's nearly over, but I wanted to post before the timer was up. (I'm warning you I may have to go back and edit, whoops, but like that's fine.)
> 
> A big thank you to zizzani for looking it over for me! 
> 
>  
> 
> _I love my blue son_

“Yeah, I was thinking we could go to the beach tonight—I bought some of his favorite wine and I was thinking we could have dinner there,” Keith said into his phone as he lounged on the couch. “No, he's not home—he had to work late. He should be home soon.”

Keys jingled outside the door, and Keith pushed himself onto one elbow to look over his shoulder. “Hey, I gotta go, he's here. See ya’.” He hung up right as Lance walked in. Turning around to fully face him, he immediately noticed the pallor of Lance’s skin and the sluggishness of his movements. Keith’s mouth unconsciously morphed into a concerned frown.

“Hey,” Lance said as he took off his shoes at the door. He sniffed and rubbed his eyes. Even from several feet away, Keith could see how bloodshot they were.

Keith slipped off the couch and padded over to his husband, cupping Lance’s cheek. “What's wrong? Are you not feeling well?” He asked, eyebrows furrowed in concern. “Oh my god, you're burning up.”

Lance smiled weakly and shot him half-hearted finger guns. “You know it, I'm on fire,” he said, voice hoarse. He nuzzled into Keith’s hand and his eyes fell closed. “I feel like a truck hit me.”

 _You look like a truck hit you_ , Keith thought. “Come sit down, I'll get you a glass of water,” he said, leading Lance by the hand to the couch and helping him get settled before going to the kitchen.

“Thanks, honey,” Lance said, leaning his head back and taking a deep breath. “I don't know what happened—I mean, I wasn't feeling great earlier, but after lunch it just hit me all at once,” he said, taking the offered glass from Keith's hand. As he sipped, Keith ran a gentle hand through his short, curly hair.

“Well, in that case, do you just want to go to bed?” Keith asked, failing to keep a tinge of disappointment out of his voice.

Lance looked at him out of the corner of his eye, knitting his eyebrows together. “What's wrong?”

Keith sighed. “I'm just sorry that you're sick on your birthday, that's all. I wanted to give you a relaxing night,” he said, putting an arm around Lance’s shoulders and kissing the top of his head.

“Did you have something planned?” Lance asked.

Keith shrugged and admitted, “I thought it would be nice to have a picnic on the beach, but considering the circumstances I'm pretty sure that'd be a bad idea.” He lightly squeezed Lance’s shoulder. “Is there something you'd be interested in doing instead?”

Lance sat for a moment and considered the question. “Can we have dinner in bed tonight? I'm honestly just exhausted…” He said, voice trailing off as he averted his eyes to the drink cupped in his hands.

Keith’s heart twinged; he felt bad for insinuating that he was disappointed by the way the evening was going. Lance didn’t deserve to feel guilty for being sick. He pressed a reassuring kiss to Lance’s cheek and replied, “You know that today is about you, right? My job tonight is to make sure you're comfortable and relaxed.” He gave him a soft smile and let Lance snuggle into the crook of his neck. “I know it's not as happy as you'd hoped, but happy birthday, sweetheart.”

Lance sighed heavily and sunk into Keith's shoulder. “Thanks, baby,” he said. His voice was heavy with sleep, and Keith could feel his breathing start to even out.

“You're welcome,” Keith replied softly. He carded through Lance’s hair gently as they both started to doze. It was peaceful, despite the intermittent sniffling.

***

After a couple of hours, Lance’s eyes fluttered open. He noticed that dusk had fallen, and he turned to check the time. It was a quarter past six; Keith was still softly snoring beside him. Lance gently removed Keith’s arm from around his shoulders and got up to blow his nose. By the time he returned, Keith was awake, rubbing one eye with a fist.

“Hey, Sleeping Beauty,” Lance said fondly, walking over to the couch and standing in front of his yawning spouse.

“Hey,” Keith yawned again, stretching. “What time is it?”

Lance replied, “six-fifteen,” and ran his slender fingers through Keith's dark, messy hair. “I'm hungry.”

Keith blinked hard, then pushed himself to a standing position. “I'll make dinner. What are you in the mood for?” He asked.

“I think…” Lance began, wrapping his long, tan arms around Keith’s waist, “...I would like some birthday French toast.” He kissed Keith on the forehead and sighed. “I'm sorry I'm sick.”

Keith looked at him, incredulous. “Why on earth are you sorry? You couldn't help it.”

Lance pursed his lips. “I dunno, I just feel like I should be sorry.”

“You shouldn't be. I love you, and I'm gonna take care of you,” Keith replied, holding his hand out to Lance. “Why don't I get you settled into bed, and I'll make us dinner really quick?” He shepherded Lance to the bedroom; however, when he tried to return to the kitchen, he found himself unable to escape Lance’s grip.

“You realize I can't make food when I'm not in the kitchen, right?” Keith said, raising an eyebrow as the corner of his mouth lifted in amusement.

Lance spun Keith into his chest and held him low on the hips. “I know.” He smirked in a way he knew made Keith's heart jump.

“Aren't you hungry?” Keith asked, not even a little perturbed by the firm grip. He matched Lance’s smirk unabashedly.

“Oh, I'm hungry, all right,” Lance said in a low voice, running his hands up and down Keith’s sides.

Keith’s cheeks were rosy as he wrapped his arms around Lance’s neck. “You're sick, my love. You should probably rest,” he chided, kissing Lance’s flushed skin.

Lance shuddered at the touch, skin warm (but not from the fever) and face turning a deep pink. “But it's my birthday,” he whined. “You know it's probably just really bad allergies, Keith.”

“I have to go to school tomorrow, honey. I can't afford to be sick.”

“If it's just allergies then I won't get you sick, though!” Lance protested.

Keith sighed, giving Lance a wry smile. “Seriously? I thought you were tired and hungry.”

Lance narrowed his eyes and scrunched up his nose. “I am, but I want you more.”

Keith rolled his eyes, smile still on his face. “Why don't we make a deal.”

Lance raised an eyebrow.

“I'll make dinner, we snuggle and eat it in bed, and then we can have some adult fun if you’re not too tired.”

“Hmmm….” Lance pretended to take his time considering this offer, tapping his chin thoughtfully. “I guess that'll work for me.”

Keith slipped his fingers underneath Lance’s shirt, gently lifting it from his body and throwing it in the hamper. He chuckled at the look Lance gave him when he started to unbuckle Lance’s belt and slip it from his narrow hips.

“Keith, what...whatcha’ doin’ there?” Goosebumps sprung up wherever Keith’s hands brushed; it was all Lance could do to remember to breathe.

“Oh, this?” Keith asked as his fingers deftly unbuttoned Lance’s jeans. He gave Lance a coy smile. “I thought you might be more comfortable in pajamas.”

Lance breathed deeply through his nose, willing his body to chill out. “You’re making it very difficult for me to let you return to that kitchen, babe.”

“Hunger will keep you in check,” Keith said, playfully sticking out his tongue. He'd pushed Lance’s jeans halfway down his long legs and helped him step out of them. “Oh, these are cute. Have I seen them before?” Keith tugged at Lance’s waistband and grinned.

Lance was wearing a pair of boxers with little blue kittens on them, and he flushed in mild embarrassment. “No, Jo got them for me as a joke. That loser.” He laughed. “They're surprisingly comfortable, though. Leave it to her to find a gag gift I actually like.”

Keith snapped the elastic and nodded. “They'd look great on my floor.” He looked up at Lance through dark lashes and gave him a sultry smile.

Lance’s cheeks were on fire, and his whole face had turned a deep crimson. “You just stole my line.”

“Is it really yours though?” Keith countered, kissing along the dark collarbone in front of him. That effectively silenced Lance, making Keith chuckle to himself.

Lance tugged at the hem of Keith’s shirt, lifting it over raised arms and tossing it to join his own by the hamper. “Well, if I’m getting comfortable, I think it’s only fair that you do, too.” Lance said, running the back of his hand right underneath Keith’s ribs.

“I know I said that I was going to go back to the kitchen and make food, but I really don’t wanna,” Keith breathed, lips lining up with Lance’s. The blue eyes in front of him darted down at his mouth, then back up to meet his eyes.

“Are you sure you want to kiss me, even when I’m _so sick_?” Lance asked, leaning back a short distance.

“Fuck, I walked right into that one, didn’t I?” Keith said, laughing. “Why don’t you take some Tylenol for your fever, I’ll make dinner, and then we can revisit this.” He gently pinched the soft skin of Lance’s hip before turning away to exit the room.

Lance pulled on a tank top and dug around in their side table for the medicine, listening to the sound of metal bowls clanging in the kitchen. He smiled to himself with a water bottle to his lips before grimacing at the acrid taste of the capsule. He was tempted to join Keith in the kitchen, but knew he’d just be fussed over and carried back to bed, anyway. He decided to climb between the fresh, cool sheets of their bed instead. _Keith changed the sheets today_ , he thought sleepily as he snuggled down, pulling the blankets to his chin with a soft smile. It wasn’t often that he got the bed to himself, so he took advantage of the space by sprawling out. The bed was warm and comfortable, and he found himself dozing as the medicine took effect.

***

After Keith finished making dinner, he returned to a starfished, softly-snoring Lance. Shaking his head with a smile, he set their plates on the dresser and went to gently wake Lance up.

“Sweetheart,” Keith whispered, applying pressure to his shoulder, “are you still hungry?” He placed his hand on Lance’s forehead and noticed his fever had gone down. Lance moved, murmuring quietly. Keith lightly shook him, finally successful in rousing his disoriented spouse.

“Keith?” Lance asked, wrestling the sheets that were tangled around him, “what’s going on? I fell asleep again, didn't I?” He gave Keith an apologetic look. “M’sorry. My headache must have gotten the best of me.”

Keith ran a hand through his hair, noticing it was damp with sweat. “It’s okay—on the bright side, I think your fever has broken!”

Lance cheered quietly, bringing a smile to Keith’s face. “Did you make food?”

Keith gestured to the cooling plates nearby. “Do you want to go ahead and eat?” He asked.

Lance nodded, sitting up and rubbing his eyes with a fist. “Thanks again for making it. I’m really sorry I left you to do all that work.”

Keith pressed a kiss to his temple. “You did nothing wrong. I'm happy to do it,” he reassured Lance, and was glad to see Lance’s face relax in relief. “Are you feeling any better?”

Lance nodded, placing a hand on Keith's cheek. He furrowed his eyebrows in confusion when Keith started to chuckle. “What did I do?” He asked.

Keith smiled and covered Lance’s hand with his own. “Your hands are really clammy,” he replied, and Lance looked mortified. “Don’t worry! I know it's from the sickness.”

Lance sighed, head hitting the pillows heavily. “You're way better at this than you used to be,” he commented, smiling ruefully. Keith softly smacked him on the arm. He laughed and added, “Hey! It's a compliment”.

“You're the one who’s taught me so much about how to properly care for the ill,” Keith replied simply, taking Lance’s plate down from the dresser and handing it to him. “You do such a good job caring for me, I must have learned through osmosis.”

“Okay, but let's be honest here, you’ve gotten a whole lot better at this nurturing thing over the years,” Lance said, taking a bite of toast. “Oh my god, this is amazing,” he mumbled through the mouthful of bread. Keith laughed. Lance closed his eyes and reached out to touch Keith on the forehead. “You are a blessing.”

“I'm glad you like it so much,” Keith said, smiling. Shifting with a plate on his lap, he continued. “But getting back on topic,” he said, taking time to chew his own bite of toast, “you really think I'm nurturing? Me?”

Lance raised an eyebrow at him. “Seriously?”

Keith’s face was blank as he shrugged.

“I've seen how you interact with Mulder, and you're really patient with my baby nieces and nephews,” Lance elaborated, “I just think you have a knack for making sure people are taken care of.”

“Well,” Keith replied, scooching over to the other side of the bed to sit beside his husband, “I learned from the best.” He smiled fondly and giggled when Lance pressed a kiss to the side of his neck.

“True, how else would you know how to do it if I hadn't taught you?”

Keith rolled his eyes and nudged Lance with his shoulder. “Someone’s definitely not conceited.”

He laughed when Lance shot him a pair of finger guns and replied, “I’m not conceited, I’m Lance McClain-Kogane.”

The two of them sat shoulder-to-shoulder for a while, contentedly eating their breakfast-for-dinner in comfortable silence. After a while, they were interrupted by phone calls from Lance’s extended family, all scrambling to wish him a happy birthday. Keith sat and watched as Lance reassured them that he was doing all right; that his voice was all scratchy or his nose sounded stopped up because he had allergies; that he’d be right as rain tomorrow. Keith could understand only snatches of the conversation with Lance’s extended family, but he heard himself mentioned a few times. Grinning, he leaned over to whisper, “I heard you was talkin’ shit,” in Lance’s ear and made him snort in the middle of a sentence.

“I’m talking to my _grandmother_!” Lance hissed, covering the mouthpiece with his hand and trying not to laugh. “Shush!”

“Oh, snap, you even called her your grandmother this time,” Keith whispered back, grinning, “you mean business.” He yelped when an arm connected with his face.

“Hush!” Lance whispered. “Oh, not you, Abuelita, I’m sorry. Keith is being...difficult.” He stuck his tongue out at Keith and tried to shoo him away. “He was just leaving.”

“Harsh,” Keith whispered as he carefully got off the bed, trying not to bump Lance and his plate. “It’s eight pm, why is she calling now?”

“She’s in California visiting my brother, now shush!” Lance whisper-shouted back. Keith stuck out his bottom lip, and Lance rolled his eyes as he continued to talk. After a short while, once he had said his good-byes and hung up, he turned to Keith with a pointed look. “You delight in torturing me.”

Keith looked shocked. “What ever could you mean? I would never do such a thing, especially on the day of your birth?” He held the expression for a surprising amount of time before smirking. “You were taking too long. I had to do something.”

Lance shook his head, smiling a little before cramming more toast into his mouth. “I’m really glad I taught you how to cook in college,” he commented, laughing when Keith hit him gently with a pillow. “If I hadn’t, I’d probably be lying here, wasting away.”

“Oh, shush, you dork,” Keith said, dumping the pillow on the floor and crawling up behind Lance on the bed. Lance leaned his head back against him and sighed deeply. “What?” Keith asked, wrapping his arms around Lance’s waist and burying his chin in the dip between his neck and shoulder.

“I’m just...I’m happy, I guess,” Lance said. “I feel old, sure, and I’m pretty sure my family is ready to send us adoption pamphlets in the mail, but this...this is really nice.” He reached up to comb his fingers through Keith’s hair, humming softly.

Keith’s face warmed, and he turned his head so that his voice was muffled against Lance’s neck. “‘M happy, too.”

Lance grinned and pressed back against him. “What was that?” He teased. “I couldn’t hear you because your voice was all muffled.”

He laughed when Keith shook his head, refusing to return to the surface. “You’re gonna get all shy on me now?” He shifted so he could move his plate from his lap to the bedside table and twisted to face Keith.

Keith was forced to peek out from his hiding place, and Lance kissed his cheek softly. Keith’s face turned pink as he whispered, “Hi.”

“Hi,” Lance replied, inching forward to rub noses with him. “Thank you.” His voice was gentle and sincere; a far cry from the playfulness only minutes before.

Keith looked at him, confused. “For what?”

“Besides the obvious? Well, let’s see—you put up with me on the daily, you kiss me when I wake up, you clean the apartment, and you buy my special face stuff when I run out before I realize I need it,” Lance rattled off, shifting completely so they were face-to-face. “And those are just the things I can think of. Case in point, you need like, a zillion thank yous constantly for the rest of our lives.”

“Lance,” Keith said, shaking his head and smiling, “I’m not ‘putting up with you’—I enjoy being with you, and you lit up my world from the moment I met you, so jot that down.” He smiled, feeling his heart swell when he saw a little smirk appear on Lance’s face. “Yeah, I went there. And I like doing things for you—it makes me happy.”

“Who are you and what have you done with my lame husband, Keith? You’re getting all sappy and gross, and that’s my thing,” Lance said, poking Keith in the sides and cheeks. “What brought this on, anyway?”

Keith shrugged, wrapping his arms around Lance and dragging him closer, warmth radiating between the two of them. “I guess...birthdays make me feel weird and nostalgic and I love you a lot? You’ve been rubbing off on me.”

Lance gave him a wicked grin and Keith groaned. “Oh my god, no, Lance, that was not on purpose,” he screeched when Lance suddenly grabbed him and flipped him around so he was perched on top of him, “why are you like this? You know that wasn’t intentional!”

“I know, but it’s hilarious that even after years of living with me, you still don’t catch the innuendoes,” Lance replied, shaking with silent laughter. Keith couldn’t help but start laughing too.

“You’re the worst,” Keith wheezed, trying to free himself from being pinned to the bed. No dice. Resistance was futile.

“Hmm, nope,” Lance replied. “I’m the best. It’s my birthday—it’s basically a law.” Keith’s heart jumped; his instinct was to concede and agree with him, but he wanted to play a little while longer.

“So one day out of the year, you get to be the best, but the rest of the year, you go back to being the worst,” Keith said, wiggling around experimentally. He watched the muscles in Lance’s neck jump while his eyes flashed, and he preened inwardly. Still got it, he thought proudly. He reached up to wrap his arms around Lance’s neck, pulling his face closer. “Can you work with that?” _Even now, I wish I could just swim in those eyes._ The thought may have drifted lazily through his mind, but his body was tense with anticipation.

Lance raised both eyebrows and replied, “Weren't you worried about catching the plague or something?” He was nose-to-nose with Keith, and he smiled when he caught Keith’s eyes dart down to his mouth before flickering back up his face. “You are really bad at avoiding me when I’m sick, aren’t you?” He asked.

Keith stuck out his bottom lip and pouted. “Abysmal,” he conceded, leaning up to quickly peck Lance on the lips. “But it is your special day.”

Lance wrapped his arms around Keith tighter and laid his head on the pillow next to Keith’s. “It is. But you make all of my days special, so…” He said, kissing Keith’s ear lightly. “Thank you for my present earlier, and my dinner, and taking care of me, and being the best spouse anyone could hope for.” He punctuated each point with a kiss, moving up Keith’s jaw and stopping at his lips to kiss him deeply. Though they were both breathless after they separated, Lance still managed to add, “And I love you a lot, too.”

Keith flushed a bright red and reached up to cover his face with a hand. “I’m supposed to be showering you in compliments, what the hell? You can’t just say all that stuff to me right now!”

“Hmm, I can, and I will.”

Keith lifted his hand from his face and locked eyes with Lance. “You know you’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me, right?” The words slipped from his mouth like they were desperate to leave, and Keith was glad to see them go.

He could feel the uptick in Lance’s heartbeat as he watched his lover’s eyes widen. “It’s true. I wouldn’t be half the person I am today without you. I thought just meeting you was great—turns out marrying you was way cooler.” Keith watched as Lance’s face turned beet red, and he laughed. “Did I out-sap you?”

“God, Keith, that...wow.” Lance was rendered speechless for the third time in his life, and all he could do was squeeze Keith as tightly as he could. “Thank you.”

Keith ran a hand through Lance’s hair lovingly, letting the soft curls flow through his fingers like water. “You’re more than welcome,” he replied. “You deserve the universe.”

Lance looked at him and grinned. “Good thing I married you, then.”

Shaking his head, Keith tried to fight off a smile. “Gross, Lance, that was really lame.”

Lance winked and replied, “You love me, though,” making Keith laugh and only hug him tighter.

“I really do,” Keith whispered in his ear. “Happy birthday.” 


End file.
